Hand washing machine



' April 22, 1969 T. cs. MGLVAUGHLIN 3,

HAND WASHING MACHINE Filed April 17, 1967 Sheet of s Thomas 6. McLaughlin INVENTOR.

April 22, 1969 T. G. MOLAUGHLIN 3,439,370

HAND WASHING MACHINE Filed A ril 17, 19 67 Sheet i of 3 I m? as 84 /4 Thomas 6. M01. dug/71in INVENTOR.

BY WM Ffm T. G. M LAUGHLIN HAND WASHING MACHINE April 22, 1969 3 Ora Sheet Filed April 17, 1967 lllllllll M mm m MW 0 3 M m M M m T Fig. 7

United States Patent 3,439,370 HAND WASHING MACHINE Thomas G. McLaughlin, RD. 1, Box 80-13, Drums, Pa. 18222 Filed Apr. 17, 1967, Ser. No. 631,228 Int. Cl. B08b 1/04, 3/04 US. Cl. 15-4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A hand washing machine defined by a housing having an access opening formed in one wall thereof and in which powered movable brush means is disposed, the access opening in the housing being positioned relative to the powered brush means in a manner such that a persons hand may be readily inserted into the housing through the access opening and engaged with the powered brushes and the machine including means for discharging soap and Water within the housing in a manner operative to apply soap and water to the hand of a user of the machine.

The hand washing machine of the instant invention has been designed for use in various environments wherein persons find it necessary or are required to frequently wash their hands. The machine of the instant invention may be utilized in garages whereby mechanics may readily wash their hands to remove grease and grime therefrom whenever desired and may also be utilized in hospitals by nurses and doctors who are required to frequently wash their hands.

One form of the invention is particularly well adapted for use in hospitals is that it includes a first compartment in which the users hands may be washed and a second compartment in which the users hands may be rinsed with clear water (sterilized if desired), or disinfected.

The main object of this invention is to provide a hand washing machine that will provide a means whereby persons may readily wash their hands.

Another object of this invention, in accordance with the immediately preceding object, is to provide a machine including a first hand washing compartment and a second hand rinsing compartment.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a hand washing machine in accordance with the preceding objects and including working components that may be readily serviced.

A final object of this invention to be specifically enumerated herein is to provide a hand washing machine which will conform to conventional forms of manufacture, be of simple construction and easy to use so as to provide a device that will be economically feasible, long lasting and relatively trouble-free in operation.

These together with other objects and advantages which will become subsequently apparent reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a first form of the hand washing machine of the instant invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantially upon the plane indicated by section line 22 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged horizontal sectional view taken substantially upon the plane indicated by section line 33 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a vertical sectional view taken substantially upon the plane indicated by section line 4--4 of FIGURE 2;

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FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a second form of the hand washing machine of the instant invention;

FIGURE 6 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantially upon a plane indicated by section line 66 of FIGURE 5:

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged vertical sectional view taken substantially upon a plane indicated by section line 7-7 of FIGURE 5; and

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary elevational view illustrating the manner in which the main driving shaft of the second form of the invention is removably coupled to the output shaft of the electric motor of the second form of the invention.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings, and in particular to FIGURES 14, the hand washing machine of the instant invention is generally referred to by the reference numeral 10. The machine 10 includes a housing referred to in general by the reference numeral 12 including opposite side walls 14 and 16, a rear wall 18, and a partial front wall 20 having an access opening 22 formed therein. The walls 14, 16, 18 and 20 are interconnected along their lower marginal portions by means of a bottom wall 24 and a top wall 26 interconnects the upper marginal edge portions thereof, the top wall 26 being telescoped over inwardly offset upper marginal edge portions of the walls 14, 16, 18 and 20.

The housing 12 includes a vertical partition wall 30 secured to the bottom wall 24 along its lower marginal edge portions and to the side walls 14 and 16 along its opposite end portions. The partition wall 30 divides the interior of the housing 12 into a washing compartment 32 and a motor compartment 34. The side wall 14 has the inlet end of a drain tube 36 secured therethrough and the inlet end of a drain hose 38 is telescoped over the outlet end of the drain tube 36 disposed exteriorly of the housing 12.

A flexible diaphragm 40 is secured over the partial front Wall 20 to close the access opening 22 and the diaphragm 40 is secured to the partial front wall 20 by means of a frame 42 secured to the partial front wall 20 by means of a plurality of suitable fasteners 44, the diaphragm 40 having peripheral edge portions clampingly disposed between the frame 42 and the partial front wall 20. The diaphragm 40 has a pair of hand receiving openings 46 formed therein and the diaphragm 40 includes a plurality or radially outwardly extending slits 48 disposed about and projecting outwardly of each opening 46. In this manner, a persons hands may be readily inserted into the interior of the housing 12 through the openings 46 with the diaphragm 40 forming a relatively good closure about the wrists of a person whose hands are disposed in the housing 12.

An elongated and generally horizontally disposed guide bar 50 is secured between the Walls 14 and 16 in elevated position relative to the bottom wall 24 and is generally T-shaped in cross-section. A finger-tip and nail scrubbing brush assembly generally referred to by reference numeral 52 and including an inverted channel-shaped body 54 is slidably disposed on the guide bar 50 for reciprocal movement theeralong and provided with longitudinally spaced setscrews 56 for removably securing the body 50 against disengagement from the guide bar 50.

The front portion of the top wall 26 has an access opening 58 formed therein and a transparent panel 60 is secured in the opening 58 so as to define a window through which the interior of the housing may be viewed from the exterior thereof.

An electric motor 62 is mounted on the rear wall 18 in any convenient manner such as by fasteners 64 and may be connected to a suitable source of electrical potential (not shown) through appropriate switch means if desired. The motor 62 includes an output shaft 66 which projects upwardly through a bearing structure 68 carried by and projecting above the top wall 26. The upper end of the output shaft 66 has a drive pulley 70 mounted thereon aligned with a pair of similar driven pulleys 72 carried by a pair of driven shafts 74 journaled through the top wall 26 by means of bearing assemblies 76 sup ported from the top wall 26. An endless flexible belt 78 is entrained about the pulleys 70 and 72 and the lower end portions of the shafts 74 projecting downwardly into the interior of the housing 12 have a pair of circular brushes 80 removably secured thereto for rotation therewith by means of setscrews 82. Accordingly, it may be seen that operation of the motor 62 will cause the brushes 80 to be rotated.

The end wall 14 includes a journal support 84 project ing inwardly thereof which receives a sleeve bearing 86 through which a third driven shaft 88 is journaled. The lower end of the driven shaft 88 includes a crank disk 90 mounted thereon for rotation therewith and including a crank pin 92 from which one end of a connecting rod 94 is pivotally supported, the other end of the connecting rod 94 being pivotally secured to the body 54 as at 96. The upper end of the third driven shaft 88 is journalled through the top wall 26 by means of a bearing assembly 98 and a stop collar 100 is mounted on the shaft 88 above the sleeve bearing 86 by means of a setscrew 102. The upper end of the shaft 88 which projects above the top wall 26 has a driven pulley 104 mounted thereon aligned with a drive pulley 106 carried by the upper terminal end portion of the adjacent shaft 74. An endless flexible belt 108 is entrained about the pulleys 104 and 106 and therefore it may be seen that operation of the electric motor 62 will cause rectilinear reciprocation of the brush 52.

Further, the removable top wall 26 includes a manifold pipe 110 secured to the undersurface thereof and which includes a pair of branch sections opening downwardly over the brushes 80. The inlet end of the manifold pipe 110 opens through the downturned flange portion 114 of the top wall 26 telescoped over the inwardly laterally offset upper marginal portion of the side wall 14 and the latter is provided with a suitable notch 116 to receive the manifold pipe 110 therethrough. Further, the outlet end of a soap and water hose 118 is telescoped over the out- 'wardly projecting inlet end of the manifold pipe 110 and may have its inlet end suitably communicated with a source of soapy water or other liquid cleaning agent.

The housing 12 includes a readily removable downwardly opening cover 120 and the cover 120 is removably secured to the top wall 26 by means of movable fasteners 122. The cover 120 encloses the upper ends of the shaft 66, 74 and 88 and the various pulleys mounted thereon as well as the endless flexible belts 78 and 108.

In operation, a person desiring to wash his hands may place the latter within the housing 12 through the openings 46 and the motor 62 may be actuated whereupon the backs and palms of the users hands may be selectively brought into engagement with the rotary brushes 80 and the finger-tips and fingernails may be brought into engagement with the brush 52 if desired. Of course, as the hands are being washed, a suitable liquid agent is introduced into the manifold pipe 110 through the hose 118 and thus is discharged from the sections 112 onto the brushes 80 which in turn transfer the liquid cleaning agent or solution to the hands of the person being washed. In addition, inasmuch as the brushes 80 are disposed directly above the brushes 54, the liquid cleaning agent discharged onto the brushes 80 from the sections 112 will fall from the brushes 80 or a persons hand disposed therebeneath onto the brushes 54.

Referring now more specifically to FIGURES -8 of the drawings there may be seen a modified form of hand washing machine referred to in general by the reference numeral 130. The machine 130 is quite similar to the machine except that the housing 132 thereof is elongated so as to displace the end wall 134 considerably further away from the end wall 136 corresponding to the end -wall 16. However, a second partition wall 138 is secured between the top wall 140 the front and rear walls 142 and 144 and the bottom wall 146. In addition, the top wall 144 includes a hinged section 148 from which the cover 150 corresponding to the cover 120 is supported and the motor output shaft 152 corresponding to the shaft 66 includes a lower section 154 carried by the motor 156 and an upper section 158 carried by the hinged section 148, the sections 154 and 158 including axially separable adjacent end portions 160 and 162, respectively, removably coupling the lower section 154 to the upper section 158 whereby the hinged section 148 may be pivoted from the solid line position thereof illustrated in FIGURE 6 of the drawings to the phantom line position thereof illustrated in FIGURE 6 of the line position thereof illustrated in FIGURE 6 to provide access to the interior of the housing 12.

The hinged section 148 is hinged to the end wall 136 by means of suitable hinge assemblies 166 and the shaft 170 corresponding to the shaft 88 includes upper and lower end portions 172 and 174, the lower section 174 being journalled from a journal support 176 similar to the journal support 84 and connected at its lower end to a crank disk 178 corresponding to the crank disk 90 while the upper section 172 is journalled from the hinged section 148, the sections 172 and 174 including axially separable end portions 180 and 182 similar to the end portions 154 and 162.

The left end portion of the housing 132 disposed to the left of the partition 138 as viewed in FIGURES 5 and 6 of the drawings defines a rinse chamber 184 and the portion of the front wall 186 corresponding to the front wall 20 but in registry with the chamber 184 has a second access opening 188 formed therein devoid of a diaphragm such as 189 corresponding to the diaphragm 40. In this manner, a person after having washed his hands in the wash chamber 190 of the housing 132, may insert his hands into the rinse chamber 184, the latter being provided with a liquid rinse manifold 192 including forwardly and downwardly directed outlets 194 and an inlet end portion 196 which projects through an upper portion of the end wall 34 and has the outlet end of a liquid rinse supply line or hose 198 telescoped thereover.

The housing 132 includes a drain tube 200 corresponding to the drain tube 36 and which services the wash chamber 90 and also a similar drain tube 202 which individually services the rinse chamber 184 and has the inlet end of a drain hose 204 telescoped over its discharge end portion which projects outwardly of the housing 132 through the end wall 134. Of course, the housing 132 also includes a soap and water or other suitable cleaning liquid manifold pipe 206 corresponding to the manifold pipe 110 and which includes branch sections 208 corresponding to branch sections 112.

The separate rinse chamber 184 provided in the hous ing 132 will enable doctors and nurses to first wash their hands in the wash chamber 190 and then insert their washed hands, into the rinse chamber 184 without touching any portion of housing 132.

The supply of fluid to the manifold pipes 110 and 206 as well as the pipe 192 may be readily controlled by means of foot actuated valves if desired and the drain hose 38 as well as the drain hose 204 and the drain hose 212 connected to the drain tube 200 may have their outlet ends suitably communicated with any desired receptacle or drain.

The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention as claimed.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. A hand washing machine comprising a housing having an upstanding wall, powered brush means movably supported in said housing, an access opening in said wall adapted to receive a persons hand therethrough and positioned relative to said brush means for ready positioning of a persons hand through said access opening into contact with said powered brush means, and means in said housing operative to discharge cleaning liquid to the, area of the interior of said housing in which said 'brushmeans is disposed, said powered brush means including upwardly facing lower brush means mounted in said housing for horizontal reciprocation along a path generally paralleling said wall and downwardly facing upper brush means spaced vertically above said lower brush means, said upper brush means being mounted for rotation about" a vertical axis.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said upper brush means includes a pair of downwardly facing rotary brushes journalled for rotation spaced along the path of reciprocation of said lower brush means.

3. The combination of claim 1 wherein said; housing includes a flexible diaphragm of water impervious material closing said opening, said diaphragm including an opening therein of a size adapted to snugly receive a persons wrist therethrough and a plurality of slits therein extending outwardly from said opening.

4. The combination of claim 3 wherein said diaphragm includes a pair of said openings spaced horizontally apart from each other. l

5. The combination of claim 1 wherein said housing includes a flexible diaphragm of water imperviousimaterial closing said opening, said diaphragm including an opening therein of a size adapted to snugly receive a persons wrist therethrough and a plurality of slits therein extending outwardly from saidopening, said upper brush means including a pair of rotary brush means journalled for rotation about upstanding axes spaced along said path.

6. The combination of claim 1 wherein saidghousing includes a pair of separate compartments, said. access opening into and said brush means being disposed in one of said compartments, the other of said compartments having rinsing liquid dispensing means therein and said housing including a second access opening opening into said second compartment, said second access opening being unobstructed and of a size adapted to freely receive the hand of a person therethrough with sufficient clearance between the edges of said second access opening and said hand to enable said hand to be inserted into and withdrawn from said second compartment without said hand tounching any part of said housing.

7. The combination of claim 1 including cleaning liquid drain means operatively associated with said housing to drain the cleaning liquid therefrom.

8. The combination of claim 6 including first and second liquid drain zmeans operatively associated with the first and second pompartments, respectively, for draining, cleaning and rinsing liquids therefrom.

9. The combination of claim 1 wherein said housing includes a hinged top wall section supporting said upper brush means.

10. The combination of claim 1 wherein said housing includes a pair -"of separate compartments, said access opening opening into and said brush means being disposed in one of said compartments, the other of said compartments havingrinsing liquid dispensing means therein and said housing including a second access opening opening into said second compartment, said second access opening being unobstructed and of a size adapted to freely receive the hand of a person therethrough with sutficient clearance between the edges of said second access opening and saidhand to enable said hand to be inserted into and withdrawn from said second compartment without said hand tduching any part of said housing, said housing including a flexible diaphragm of water impervious material closing said opening, said diaphragm including an opening therein of a size adapted to snugly receive a personis wrist therethrough and a plurality of slits therein extending outwardly from said opening.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,282,628 5/1942 Whann et al. 15--4 X 2,814,081 ll/1957 Stevenson 2191 2,961,672 11/1960 Alcamo 152l.0 3,060,472 10/1 962 Horton 15-4 3,066,336 12/ 1962 Stobbe 15-2 1 WALTER A. SC I IEEL, Primary Examiner. L. G. MACHLIN, Assistant Examiner.

US. Cl. X.R. 15-21 

